Paint the Sky
by CelestiasFaithful
Summary: Ginger Price never asked to be the new curiosity of the King of Nightmares, let alone be pulled back and forth between the good and bad sides of this new fantastical world of spirits...but sometimes, the best things in life are unexpected
1. Prologue

**Hi everyone, and welcome to my first ever RoTG fic!**

 **First off, a little about me:**

 **I've honestly only seen RoTG all the way through one time when I was home sick, but trust me- that movie stuck with me and even _before_ I saw it I was lurking in the fandom due to Tumblr's side-effect of 'fandom osmosis'. I've been reading fics in this section for years now, and I've finally decided to come out of hiding and make my contribution to the fandom.**

 **Thank you for taking the time to begin reading this story, and if you like it- please review!**

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 **Prologue-** _Darkness Rising_

All was quiet in the forests of Burgess, Pennsylvania, as it had for years now. Paranormal investigators had once scoured the area after countless sightings of unexplainable phenomena. Six-foot-tall rabbit creatures, flying humanoids with the ability to control waves of dust-like creations, and even what was depicted as a teenage boy who controlled ice. But after weeks upon months of no signs of the mysterious creatures, the forests became quiet once more and stayed that way.

One object that had gotten the attention of Burgess residents was the remains of ' _The Burgess Bed-frame_ '. It was once the bare bones of a wooden bed frame that sat atop a gigantic hole. Some said that the hole led to a secret bomb shelter for some United States Government facility, while others said it was a straight drop downwards into the depths of Hell itself, but what the residents believed to be the truth was the remains of an old well, which was the water for a house that collapsed, leaving the bed frame.

After the strange sightings, what once was the gaping hole was now covered in dirt, looking as if it had just been part of the regular forest floor all along. There wasn't even a single shard or splinter of decaying wood left of the bed. No one questioned the strange disappearance of the large hole, assuming it had been filled for safety reasons.

Little did the people of Burgess know that what had been sealed down in the depths of that abyss would rise once more that very night.

It was late February, which meant the wind blew bone-chilling gusts through the lifeless remains of trees, and the piles of accumulated snow now slightly melted before the next big snowstorm that came through. But this night was a special night. One that happened when March was coming and Spring was about to arrive. Winds gusted through the lifeless trees, giving an oddly-warm feeling for the dark, dead atmosphere of the woods at night. That type of weather meant that Jack Frost had vacated the area for the year, and that the coast was clear.

Suddenly, the ground that had replaced the hole suddenly turned black, disintegrating into dust and falling down into the re-appearing chasm of utter darkness. Then a hand poked out, grasping at the dirt in an attempt to get a grip on something for a handhold. The hand was a shade of grey that would even make the color of corpses look lovely, and the rest of the body that followed suit matched.

He let out a grunt as he lifted himself out of the hole for good, getting up off of the ground to stand and take in the scenery of the outside world. At first he gave a peaceful smile, but it quickly turned into an evil grin of pointy, shark-like teeth. His golden eyes glimmered with mischief as his body melted into the shadow of a tree, and vanished from sight- all except for the evil laughter that echoed throughout the forest.


	2. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone, thanks for checking this story out- and welcome to chapter one!**

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 **Thanks you to WhisperedxNothingsx for following and adding this story to their favorites!**

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 **Chapter 1-** _A Special Kind of Fear_

Pitch Black held his scythe high, making sure its blade pointed towards the golden-eyed Nightmares the entire time as a silent threat that if they were to rebel once more, he would show no mercy. " _Onyx_!" He shouted suddenly as black sad materialized in front of him, creating a black mare. ' _You called?_ ' It whinnied in a friendly tone. "You haven't earned my respect back to use that tone with me. _None_ of you have." He growled, grabbing the trains that were created instantly from the same sand. He whipped them, causing Onyx to spring into a gallop, tossing her head angrily as the herd of countless Nightmares followed suit for their rounds across the globe. ' _-If I may make an objection, Master: **I** for one, did not rebel._ ' She said hotly as they sprang out from the hole and into the forest, the rest of the herd departing for their usual locations.

Pitch lurched the reins, lading in the middle of town. "You're on your own. _Don't disappoint me_." He said, hopping of Onyx with a grunt and melting into the shadow of a nearby building. When he reappeared from the shadows, he was in one of the many bedrooms of a Burgess child. The room had pale beige walls, but were barely visible behind the various posters that plastered the walls. The spirit grimaced at the various posters of _Twenty-One-Panic-Romance_ , or whatever band it was. The floor was littered with clothes that were either black or hot pink, with no in-between. Spiked silver accessories and multiple pairs of combat boots were felt on the floor of her closet as Pitch situated himself atop a pink plaid skirt. He opened the door a crack, extending his hand out gracefully as black sand appeared in his hand, fluttering in the air like food dye in water. It curled outwards from his palm, swirling in sparkling black tendrils towards the body underneath the black comforter. Cupcake had grown since Pitch had been out last to torment the children of Burgess, but not long enough for her to stop believing. The Sandman had left her a dream about being the front-woman of her own punk rock band, which made his time in that room even sweeter when his nightmare sand got to devour that of Sanderson's. The roaring golden crowd melted into a black reptilian creature, running after the girl in a way reminiscent to the film Jurassic Park. It snapped its jaws, ripping away at the back of her leather skirt and jacket. She screamed in terror, tossing and turning in bed as the access nightmare sand sluggishly exited through the window. The creature's raptor claws grabbed her leather jacket, which somewhat prevented the claws from burrowing into her. Cupcake gasped awake, causing pitch to slink back towards the wall of her closet, traveling through the shadows to the bedroom of his next victim.

The room was painted a cool blue, with black bookshelves lining the majority of the room. Some were filled with actual books, while others contained knickknacks of various sorts. He tiptoed across the carpet, opening his hand and allowing his powers to work their magic. The Nightmare Sand slowly moved towards the figure in the bed, wrapping around said person like a cocoon. After a few moments of the sand taking hold on its victim, it suddenly formed into a hideous Nightmare; and in this case, it was more hideous than usual. It was deformed and warped like it was the product of otherworldly levels of equine inbreeding, and the Nightmare Sand it was made out of had a slight emerald tint to it in the pale moonlight.

Pitch stared at the horse, his mouth opened and eyes wide in shock as it retreated from the bed. He knew what had happened, but it was something he had never truly thought he'd experience, especially in such a full-fledged state. That Nightmare was more than just fear. It was a level of terror that his Nightmares had come across, but never himself. Pitch preferred to personally give nightmares to the children of Burgess, since they were favored by the Guardians, and especially Jack Frost with a boy named Jamie Bennet. This Nightmare had the sick emerald shine of pure anxiety. Said Nightmare refused to stop moving, constantly running in panicked circles, embodying the illness itself.

As Pitch's fingers caressed the creature, only before the sand fell to the floor and swirled in a undefinable shale. A gasp was heard, coming from the figure in the bed, who had sat straight up in bed. Pitch sunk into the shadows, watching from the already-existing shadow of the nearest bookshelf. He couldn't tell anything about the child in the darkness of the room, except for a head of frazzled hair from sleeping. It was breathing heavily, pulling out one of the nightstand draws furiously, rummaging around as if their life depended on it. Pitch watched in glee, missing the feelings he got from the fear of children grabbing for flashlights. Instead, the figure grabbed a bottle of some sort, popping something into their mouth and chugging from a bottle of water. Nothing happened for a few minutes, then Pitch heard the soft swoosh of his sand suddenly retreating out of the room. Somehow the child had evaded his nightmares, and stopped them all together.

He let out a sigh of defeat, internally panicking in order to not show his fear towards this apparently new way to stop fear. He dissipated into the shadow completely, reappearing in the shadow of a streetlight- right where he and Onyx departed. He used the nightmare sand to cause his scythe to materialize in front of him, banging the bottom of the handle against the asphalt. Onyx trotted towards him out of nowhere in particular, stopping when she had reached him. ' _What seems to be the problem, Master?_ ' She whinnied as he hopped onto her back. "There's something new out there that's counteracting my nightmares..." He growled, his heel slightly burrowing her flank like spurs. Onyx galloped away, heading for the forest. "-and I'm _definitely_ not going to finally rise to my former glory with _that around_." He scoffed with an evil grin.

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